Uncovering Secrets: The Third Novel in the Rosemont Series (2 page)

Chapter 2

Maggie and John stepped over the stone wall together and
began searching the shallow stretch of woods along the fence, calling to Roman,
hoping against hope that he was there distracted by something—or maybe
even hurt. John found Roman’s empty collar snagged on a post near a small break
in the fence.

John
turned to Maggie, silently holding the collar up for her to see. Fear settled
on them both like a thick fog. Roman was, indeed, gone.

“Oh,
God,” Maggie said. “We’re right next to the road.”

John
nodded, looking at the road nearby. “He’s a smart dog, and he’s street savvy.
He’ll be all right.”

They
hurried back to the house. He couldn’t fool her. She knew John was trying to
put a brave face on it, but he was as worried as she was. “Let’s take separate
cars to search.”

He
nodded. “I’ll turn north out of the driveway and go back to my house. He may be
headed home.”

“We’ll
find him,” Maggie said, but John was already in his car, starting the engine.

***

Maggie pulled into the berm along the road below
Rosemont. She grabbed the flashlight from her glove box to boost the thin late
after-noon sunshine. She picked her way through the thick brush to the spot at
the edge of the woods where Roman had escaped. She switched on the flashlight
and cursed under her breath. She shook it, but it remained dark. “Stupid
batteries,” she muttered.

Maggie
followed the fence, calling to Roman and searching under bushes and in the
ravine. The terrain was uneven and she lost her footing, gashing her thumb and
landing on both knees on a rocky outcrop. As she dusted debris off of her
jeans, she decided she’d better return to her car before she became a casualty.

Maggie
slid behind the wheel and reached for the ignition.
He’s here. I can feel
it.
She leaned her head against the steering wheel.
Why didn’t he answer
me? He must be hurt.
The thought propelled her from the car. The area she
had just searched was now engulfed in the long shadows of an early dusk; she
didn’t dare retrace her steps in the dark. Maggie cupped her hands around her
mouth, and yelled “ROMAN!” until she was hoarse.

Maggie
leaned against the driver’s side door and listened. Had she heard a whimper?
She turned her head in the direction of the sound and was about to set off in
that direction when her phone rang. Her heart leapt into her throat; maybe John
had found him. She dove into the car and upended her purse in the passenger
seat, answering her phone just before the call went to voice mail.

“Anything?”
she asked.

“No.
He’s not at my place. I’m going to walk along our favorite routes. Where have
you covered?”

“I’m
searching the area along the road by the bottom boundary of my property.”

“That’s
pretty steep, and it’s getting dark. You need to get out of there.”

“He’s
here, John. I can sense it. I thought I heard him whimper.”

“It’s
windy, sweetheart. I don’t think you could hear him whimper.”

Maggie
shrugged. “I guess you’re right.”

“If
he were there, he’d come to you.”

“Unless
he’s hurt.” She hated uttering those words.

John
was silent. She knew he agreed but didn’t want to acknowledge the possibility.
He cleared his throat. “Why don’t you drive into town, along the square, and
over to Westbury Animal Hospital. I haven’t been there yet.”

“On
my way. And John—we won’t give up until we find him.”

Maggie
got out of her car and called to Roman one last time. She listened carefully
but the only answer was the whistling wind. “If you’re out here, Roman, we’re
coming back for you. Hang on, help is on the way.”

***

Maggie drove slowly around the town square, windows
down, looking for any sign of a dog huddled in a doorway or shivering in an
alley. The square was deserted on this cold Sunday night, and all the shops and
businesses were closed except for Pete’s Bistro. Maggie angled her car into a
spot along the curb.

“Hi,
Maggie. What can I get for you?” Pete asked as she pushed through the front
door.

“No.
I’m not here for food. Roman’s lost, Pete,” she said. “I came by to see if
anyone’s reported a stray dog.”

“Oh
no! That’s terrible. Nobody’s said a thing. In fact, we’ve been dead all day.
As soon as Frank finishes eating, we’re going to close early,” he said,
pointing to local business tycoon and town council-member Frank Haynes.

“He
escaped through a hole in the back fence at Rosemont. Will you keep an eye
out?” Maggie asked.

“Of
course. I’ll look for him on my way home. Do you have any flyers? I’ll post one
here and take them to the other merchants on the square in the morning.”

“Not
yet. We’ve been looking for him since we discovered he was missing. I’ll make
up flyers tonight and drop them off first thing.”

“Put
on there that I’ll give a free dinner to whoever finds him.”

Maggie
squeezed his arm.

“You
ought to go tell Frank. He finds strays all the time. And someone might turn
him in to Forever Friends. He’ll get all of his employees at the shelter to
look for Roman, too.”

“You
really think so?”

“I
know so. Frank may be a cold fish with people, but he really cares about
animals. You’d be surprised.”

Maggie
gave Pete a quizzical look. He nodded in Frank Haynes’ direction.

What
is there to lose?
She needed to do everything possible to find Roman.
Maggie walked over to the table where Haynes was engrossed in
The New York
Times
.

“Frank,”
Maggie said, and noted the flash of irritation as he looked up. “Sorry to
disturb your quiet dinner.”

Frank
stood clumsily. “Not at all. Would you like to join me?” His tone indicated he
desired nothing less.

“No.
Sit, please,” Maggie replied, waving him back into his seat. “I just want to
let you know that Roman—John’s Golden Retriever—has gone missing.
He got out of the fence at Rosemont this afternoon.”

Frank
Haynes shoved back his chair and jumped to his feet. He pulled his wallet out
of his pocket, dropped two fifty-dollar bills on the table, and steered her
toward the door.

“Don’t
you want to wait for your change?” Maggie asked. She’d never known Frank to be
careless with his money.

“Absolutely
not. Tell me where you’ve already looked.”

“I
just wanted you to know in case he’s turned in to Forever Friends.”

“He’ll
be microchipped, so we’ll know if it’s him. I’ll help you look now. It’s going
to be a cold night for him outside.”

After
a quick conversation on the sidewalk, Frank Haynes headed to his Mercedes sedan.
He’d drive along Mill Road while Maggie wove through the streets lining the
square. She was pulling into the lot at Town Hall when her phone rang.

“Did
you find him?” she asked breathlessly.

“No,”
John replied. “We’re not going to find him tonight. We need to call it quits. I
don’t want you catching cold. Go home and get some rest.”

“I’m
not going to catch a cold, and I don’t want to rest. I want to find Roman.”
Maggie paused. “Can he survive outside tonight, in these temperatures?”

John
hesitated, and she knew he entertained the same doubts. “He’s got a thick fur
coat, and he’s smart enough to take shelter from the wind. He should be fine.”
Maggie knew he didn’t believe that, and neither did she.

“Will
you come back to Rosemont?” she asked.

“I’ll
stay at my place, in case he comes here.”

“Would
you like company? I hate to think of you alone. Eve and I could come over.”

“No.
You need to stay there in case Roman makes his way back to Rosemont.”

“Good
point,” Maggie answered. “I’ll sleep in that big chair in the library by the
French doors. Eve will bark if he comes to Rosemont. We won’t hear him if we’re
asleep upstairs.”

“Thank
you, honey.”

“I’m
going to make up a missing pet flyer tonight. Can you send me a photo of
Roman?”

“Yes.
Good idea.”

“I’ll
put them up at Town Hall. Pete’s offering a free dinner to anyone who finds him
and promised to post the flyers all over the square. I stopped at Pete’s to see
if anyone had mentioned a stray to him. Frank Haynes was there, having dinner.
I told him about Roman, and he dropped a hundred dollars on the table and raced
out to look for him. Can you believe it?”

“Actually,
I can,” John replied. “If you or I were missing, it might be a different story.
But not with a dog.” She could hear John yawn. “We should let him know we’ve
stopped looking for tonight.”

“I
still have his cell phone, remember? I don’t have his home number.”

“We’ve
got it in our system at the animal hospital; I can log in to it from here. I’ll
phone Frank when we hang up.”

“Call
me if Roman comes home,” they both said in unison.

Chapter 3

Maggie gave the lost-dog flyers to Pete early the next
morning, and he got every merchant on the square to post them. She pulled into
her parking spot, “Reserved for the Hon. Mayor Margaret Martin,” and noted that
Frank Haynes’ Mercedes was in the lot. He was spending more time at Town Hall
lately.

Maggie
turned toward his office when she got off the elevator.

“Happy
New Year, Frank. And thank you, again, for your help last night.”

“Any
luck? Did he come home?”

“I’m
afraid not. We’re posting flyers all over town. And we’ll keep looking.”

Haynes
nodded from behind his desk. “I’m really sorry.”

Maggie
could tell that he meant it. “You’re here early. And we don’t have a council
meeting this week.”

“Just
attending to some last-minute details before I leave town.”

“Really?
I didn’t know you were going anywhere.”

“I’m
taking a few days of vacation.”

“Good
for you, Frank,” Maggie replied. “Are you headed somewhere warm? It’d be nice
to get away from this weather.”

“Yes.
Florida. I’m visiting friends,” he lied. He was going to Florida, but he didn’t
have any friends. “And I thought I’d check out those condos that the town
pension fund owns in Miami. See for myself where they are and what condition
they’re in. We need to get those sold. The pension fund needs the cash. Someone
has to do something to get the ball rolling.”

Maggie
bristled at the reproach in his voice. As mayor of Westbury, she was doing
everything in her power to restore the town’s finances after the recent fraud and
embezzlement by former Mayor William Wheeler and probably other
co-conspirators, yet to be uncovered. Wheeler’s jailhouse suicide had thrown
the investigation into turmoil.

“Do
you have anything new planned for the upcoming year?” he asked.

Maggie
paused. Was he fishing to see if she’d turned in her resignation? It seemed
like such a long time ago, even though it had only been a few days. “Nope. I
plan to spend the year in the mayor’s office, working through the issues facing
Westbury.” She paused to gage the effect of her words. Did she detect a flash
of anger? She couldn’t be sure. She hoped so. “Have a nice trip, Frank,” Maggie
said and turned on her heel.

“One
more thing,” he called to her. “I’ve lost my cell phone. I was wondering if you
picked it up the other day when we collided on the steps.”

Maggie
hesitated. Would his phone provide valuable evidence for the fraud
investigation? Frank Haynes wasn’t a suspect, but he hadn’t been cleared,
either. And she felt certain that he’d plotted with Professor Upton to
manipulate her into resigning the mayoral seat. Just because he’d been so nice
about Roman didn’t change any of that. She needed time to think this through.

“No,
I didn’t. Why don’t you post a note in the break room?”

Chapter 4

Loretta Nash shivered in the frosty morning while Frank
Haynes unlocked the door of Haynes Enterprises. She hung up her coat and
settled herself behind her desk without a word to him. Loretta was in no mood
to be nice to her employer.

She
was logging in to her computer when he said pleasantly, “Happy New Year.”

Loretta
looked at him over the top of her computer monitor but didn’t return the
salutation.

Haynes
cleared his throat and stepped to the side of her desk. “About the other night.
With Delgado …”

Loretta
held up a hand to cut him off. “I don’t want to discuss it with you. The
subject is closed.” She swiveled in her chair to leaf through a binder on the
credenza behind her desk.

“I
want to apologize to you,” he continued.

Loretta
remained with her back to him, but she stopped turning the pages.

“Delgado
was out of line. He was drunk.”

Loretta
turned back to him and stared.

“Why
did you go to his office with him? When he was obviously into his cups?”

“You
sent me there, remember?” Loretta replied.

“Not
to go up to his office with him. Surely a beautiful woman like you has had
enough experience with men to know what would happen in that situation.
Especially dressing like you do, in short skirts and tight sweaters.”

“Are
you saying I brought it on myself? By what I was wearing? Chuck Delgado almost
raped me. I gave him no encouragement whatsoever. I didn’t consent to any of
it. If you hadn’t come in when you did, he would’ve succeeded.”

Haynes
raised his hands and gestured for her to calm down. “No. Of course not. It’s
just something you might think about when you’re around men like that.”

“I
don’t intend to be around men like that,” Loretta replied in glacial tones.
“And I expect you to tell him he’s not welcome here,” she continued, emboldened
by his unexpected apology.

Haynes’
shoulders stiffened and she wondered if she had gone too far. “It’s not up to
you to tell me who can come to my business.”

She
and Haynes locked eyes. Loretta could taste her fear. She lived paycheck to
paycheck and needed this job. She twisted a strand of her long blond hair.

“I’m
going away for a few days,” he finally replied. “I can’t guarantee that he
won’t stop by.”

“I’ll
keep the doors locked.”

Haynes
nodded, raking her with critical eyes.

“Where
are you going?” she asked as he turned to his office.

“Out
of town,” he snapped. He shut the door firmly and slumped into his chair. How
in the hell had he allowed himself to become entangled with a thug like Chuck
Delgado? Ron Delgado was his personal investment advisor and had helped Haynes
grow his considerable portfolio. But when Ron brought Haynes into an
“investment group” involving his brother Chuck, Haynes should have run the
other way—fast. He’d served on the town council with Chuck Delgado long
enough to know that he was a sleazy bottom feeder. He had always suspected that
the Westbury town councilman had mob connections. Now he was certain of it.

Delgado
orchestrated the embezzlement from Westbury’s general fund and the town
workers’ pension fund, commissioned arson fires and what was intended to be a
fatal car crash for Alex Scanlon, and who knew what else.
Thank God, no one
was killed in that crash. They would have nailed me as an accessory to murder
even though I didn’t know about it until after the fact.

Haynes
pushed himself out of his chair and began to pace.
Maybe I should go to
Chief Thomas with what I know,
he thought for the umpteenth time. But he
couldn’t—he was in too deep.

He’d
never intended to steal from anyone but he’d turned a blind eye to the facts as
they emerged. Even if the state offered him immunity for his testimony and he
avoided going to jail, his reputation and business interests in this close-knit
rural community would be irretrievably tarnished. People would boycott his
fast-food restaurants and the business he’d built from the ground up would
fail. He’d spent more than twenty years donating to every charity in town and
sponsoring most of the sports teams. He wouldn’t throw away his stature as the
town’s leading businessman and philanthropist. And Haynes didn’t want to think
about how Delgado would even the score if he ratted him out.

He
stared at the painting next to his door. The jump drive containing enough
evidence to put Chuck Delgado in jail was in the safe concealed by that
painting. He didn’t need to go to Chief Thomas just yet. He’d continue with his
plans for his Miami trip.